Antonio Pierce is among the favorites to land the head coaching job with the Las Vegas Raiders, having held the interim position for nine games following the firing of Josh McDaniel midway through the season.
Pierce went 5-4 in charge of the Raiders and, according to Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, he has the support of the locker room, as well as that of other figures within the organization.
Rapoport and Pelissero are reporting that Maxx Crosby, who has backed Pierce publicly, will seek a trade if he isn’t kept on.
“Sources say there remains support among many in the extended Raiders family for interim coach Antonio Pierce — including in the locker room, with All-Pro edge rusher Maxx Crosby will explore a trade request if Pierce isn’t retained, according to sources,” they wrote.
The Raiders are understood to be leaning towards keeping Pierce, though Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh is also a top candidate. However, there is interest from elsewhere as he is set to be interviewed for the Titans job on the back of Mike Vrabel’s departure.
Crosby took to X to tweet, “HireAP” after news regarding the Titans interview broke.
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Rapoport and Pelissero add that the team is split between Pierce and Harbaugh but the locker room is united behind the former.
“Inside the Raiders’ extended family — including fans and ex-players — sources say there have emerged a Harbaugh camp and a Pierce camp, with the locker room publicly united behind its interim coach.
“Crosby, one of the respected leaders and sounding boards for Mark Davis, has been through rebuilds in the past, doesn’t want to go through another one again and believes Pierce has earned the right to continue building upon the culture and energy he built in Las Vegas this season.”
While Pierce has done enough to earn serious consideration, the Raiders might feel like they shouldn’t pass up an opportunity to take advantage of one of the most impressive coaching markets we’ve seen in a while.
